Black Reign (album)

Black Reign is the third studio album by American rapper Queen Latifah, released in 1993.[7] Black Reign was her most successful album up to that point, peaking at number 60 on the Billboard 200.[8] The album also peaked at number fifteen on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album sold in excess of 500,000 copies, achieving gold status.[9]

Black Reign
Studio album by
Queen Latifah
ReleasedNovember 16, 1993
RecordedNovember 1992 – September 1993
StudioSkyline Studio, Giant Studio, & Unique Recording Studios, New York City[1]
GenreHip hop, vocal jazz
Length55:44
LabelMotown[2]
ProducerSidney "S.I.D." Reynolds, Tony Dofat, Kay Gee, Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah chronology
Nature of a Sista
(1991)		 Black Reign
(1993)		 Order in the Court
(1998)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert Christgau[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[6]
Singles from Black Reign
  1. "U.N.I.T.Y."
    Released: November 9, 1993
  2. "Just Another Day..."
    Released: 1994
  3. "Black Hand Side/Weekend Love"
    Released: 1994
  4. "Rough.../I Can't Understand"
    Released: September 27, 1994

Critical reception

Trouser Press wrote that Latifah "rhymes over bottom-booming jeep beats and sings to sweet soul, dancehall and, in the case of 'Winki’s Theme,' a song for her late brother, a live jazz quartet."[10] The New York Times wrote: "As one of hip-hop's true vocal virtuosos, Queen Latifah tosses off articulate, quick-changing syncopations when she raps, slipping in and out of a Jamaican accent and singing melodic choruses in a sweet, strong voice."[11]

Track listing
  1. "Black Hand Side" – 3:22
  2. "Listen 2 Me" – 4:43
  3. "I Can't Understand" – 3:50
  4. "Rough..." (featuring Treach, Heavy D & the Boyz and KRS-One) – 5:04
  5. "4 The D.J.'s (Interlude)" – 1:38
  6. "Bring tha Flavor" – 3:25
  7. "Coochie Bang..." (featuring Treach) – 3:46
  8. "Superstar" – 3:56
  9. "No Work" – 2:51
  10. "Just a Flow (Interlude)" – 1:30
  11. "Just Another Day..." – 4:29
  12. "U.N.I.T.Y." – 4:11
  13. "Weekend Love" (featuring Tony Rebel) – 4:09
  14. "Mood Is Right" – 3:30
  15. "Winki's Theme" – 5:29

Music videos

Influence

The album was a major influence for young adult novelist Jason Reynolds,[12] who was inspired to start writing poetry when he discovered Black Reign at nine years old.[13]

References
  1. "Black Reign - Queen Latifah | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  2. "Queen Latifah, Black Reign (Motown): The recording..." OrlandoSentinel.com.
  3. Christgau, Robert (February 1994). "Consumer Guide Album". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Volume 6: MUZE. p. 711.CS1 maint: location (link)
  5. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 669.
  6. Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 318–319.
  7. "Queen Latifah | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  8. "Queen Latifah". Billboard.
  9. "QUEEN LATIFAH EXTENDS HER REIGN". courant.com.
  10. "Queen Latifah". Trouser Press. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
  11. Pareles, Jon (February 22, 1994). "Review/Pop; Queen Latifah, Tough but Kind (Published 1994)" – via NYTimes.com.
  12. Brown, Lesley-Ann (August 22, 2015). "The Graceful Power of Novelist Jason Reynolds". NBC News. Retrieved 2018-04-01.
  13. Foster, Jordan (April 17, 2017). "Jason Reynolds: From Kid Poet to Award-Winning Author". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
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